Chris provides advice on the management of workers' compensation, liability and motor vehicle claims and regularly appears as counsel in the Conciliation and Arbitration Service, the District Court and the Court of Appeal.

Chris acts for a number of clients with significant retained deductibles on their liability policies and represents a number of London market syndicates in liability and property claims.

Who he works with

Chris advises and acts on workers' compensation claims for a number of private insurers and their insureds in Western Australia. He also works on liability claims for Australian insurers and London-based syndicates and underwriters, and motor vehicle personal injury claims for the Insurance Commission of Western Australia. He provides advice to the local insurance broking market on indemnity and insurance obligations in contracts.

Chris has a law degree from the University of Western Australia. He is also a member of the Australian Insurance Law Association.

Life before Sparkes

Chris started his legal career as an article clerk with Jackson McDonald in 1995 and was admitted to their partnership in 2002. He then became a founding partner of Jarman McKenna in 2003—a boutique insurance law firm that merged with Sparke Helmore in March 2017.

Life outside of Sparkes

Chris is a keen cyclist, currently training for his fourth consecutive Hawaiian Ride for Youth from Albany to Perth (700 km) which will see him ride the Wheatbelt route for the first time and stop at various schools along the way to talk to students about mental health. The ride raises money for Youth Focus, an independent West Australian not-for-profit organisation working to stop youth suicide and helping young people aged 12 to 25 overcome issues associated with depression, anxiety, self-harm and suicidal thoughts.

Off the bike, Chris enjoys spending time with his family, passionately following his beloved Fremantle Dockers and offsetting some of the kilometres ridden on his bike with some quality red wine.